Chase Reportedly Bid on Dresdner

Chase Manhattan Corp., the third-largest bank in the United States, reportedly is close to announcing that it has made a $1.6-billion offer for Dresdner Kleinwort Benson, the London-based subsidiary of Germany’s Dresdner Bank. The Independent newspaper in London, which quoted unidentified “insiders” at Dresdner Kleinwort Benson, said the deal could be announced this week. Chase is already in talks to buy Robert Fleming Holdings, a British investment bank, a move that if successful would make Chase a bigger player in the securities business. The newspaper said the two deals would complement each other, with Chase using Dresdner Kleinwort Benson, which handles investment banking, to build its European operations and Fleming for its expertise in the Far East.